Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection, and the resulting Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), remain threats to global public health, despite extensive efforts to develop anti-HIV-1 therapeutic agents.
An enveloped virus, HIV-1 hides from humoral recognition behind a wide array of protective mechanisms. The major HIV-1 envelope protein (HIV-1 Env) is a glycoprotein of approximately 160 kD (gp160). During infection, proteases of the host cell cleave gp160 into gp120 and gp41. gp41 is an integral membrane protein, while gp120 protrudes from the mature virus. Together gp120 and gp41 make up the HIV-1 envelope spike, which is a target for neutralizing antibodies. Broadly neutralizing antibodies that bind to HIV-1 Env have been identified, including the VRC01 antibody, which specifically binds to the CD4-binding site of gp120 and can neutralize a high percentage of HIV-1 strains. However, there is a need to develop additional neutralizing antibodies for HIV-1 with varying recognition and neutralization profiles for commercial production.